Health & Science

The 13th annual Distinguished Achievement Awards, presented by the Circle of Life 100, will take place Thursday, April 26, at the Del Mar Country Club, 6001 Clubhouse Drive, Rancho Santa Fe, 92067. The event, from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., will include hors d’oeuvres and refreshments. Distinguished...

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a new Climate Action Plan on Feb. 14, incorporating a goal to achieve 90 percent renewable electricity by 2030 while also addressing housing affordability and costs to development. The plan includes strategies to meet the state’s 2020...

On a picturesque Saturday morning Feb. 3, more than 700 community members came out to partake in the ninth annual Mitchell Thorp Foundation (“MTF”) 5K Run/Walk. An MTF record $150,719 was raised from community-minded sponsors and individuals to support families with children diagnosed with life-threatening...

Dr. Rob Adamson has performed hundreds of lifesaving heart operations during his 30-plus-year medical career, including heart transplant surgeries at Sharp Memorial Hospital, one of two heart transplant centers in San Diego County. Music is one thing that helps him deal with the stress of his demanding...

Padres Pedal the Cause has donated more than $2.4 million to support cancer studies at the Salk Institute, Rady Children’s Hospital, Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health and Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, according to a press release. The check was presented to representatives...

Torrey Pines High School senior Sophia LeRose is hosting Sweat for the Cure, a cardio boot camp at Torrey Pines’ Ed Burke Stadium on Saturday, Feb. 3 benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The hour-long boot camp will be led by local fitness instructors Cindy Whitmarsh and Lisa Stettner. ...

Luna DNA, the first and only genomic and medical research knowledge base powered by the blockchain and owned by its community, announced recently that Solana Beach resident Dawn Barry has been named president, according to a press release.

A half-dozen people sit semi-circle at the Sorrento Valley office of MusicWorx, counting out their breath, blowing through harmonicas at their weekly session of the agency’s blues harmonica group. Lindsay Zehren, a board-certified music therapist, counts out their cadence, soothing and nearly hypnotic,...

The La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology recently announced that Rancho Santa Fe resident Pamela K. Wasserman, MPH, a longtime leader in health care, real estate and a variety of other businesses, has been elected to its Board of Directors. “We’re delighted to welcome Pamela Wasserman...

Invention of the microscope centuries ago revolutionized scientific perspective, unlocking a world previously hidden to human eyes and opening doors to improved medical treatments and hygiene. Today, another innovation promises exponentially greater rewards in understanding the nature of life and...

The Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club recently made a $310,000 contribution toward Rady Children’s Hospital’s planned Copley Psychiatric Emergency Department, which aims to be the region’s first pediatric psychiatric emergency department and one of very few in the nation to serve the unique needs of...

Scripps Health Nov. 7 unveiled a master plan that represents the largest building program in the health care system’s 125-year history and triggers significant construction projects at its hospital campuses across San Diego County designed to serve the needs of the community for generations to...

Rancho Santa Fe residents Iris and Matthew Strauss hold a great deal of respect for the doctors at Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health. When their daughter’s cancer reappeared, it was the first place they turned for help. Because of their experience and trust in the medical and research...

100% Chiropractic, a chiropractic wellness center, celebrated its grand opening in Cielo Village on Aug. 17. The new business aims to educate and empower patients to take charge of their health, rather than just treat symptoms. 100% Chiropractic offers chiropractic care, chiropractic x-rays, massage...

Suzanne Seui was expecting her fourth child when she received devastating news: Her daughter, Manaia, would be born with a rare and serious condition that causes intestines to push into the chest cavity. It would require major surgery soon after birth, and an extended stay in the neonatal intensive...

Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa’s head tennis professional, Eduardo Sanchez, is hoping to net plenty of support for an annual charity event. The 12th annual SES Tennis Center Fundraising Pro-Am is scheduled for Sept. 22-23 at the resort, which features a sponsor party and tennis tournament. Monies...

On June 15, the Santa Fe Irrigation District Board of Directors recognized the top three winners for the Santa Fe Irrigation District’s “Be Water Smart” Water Awareness Poster Contest. The annual poster contest is open to all fourth graders in the district’s service area. This year’s winners are:...

When Laurel Amtower was diagnosed with cancer in late 2009, she and her parents were floored. Laurel, an English professor at San Diego State University, had been having trouble keeping her balance, and her family doctor sent her to have a magnetic resonance imaging test, or MRI. A doctor came...

Teachers look for warning signs, classmates keep an eye on their friends and counselors have meetings with parents, but all the efforts still are not enough at times. “I think the natural reaction for people is to consider, ‘Is there more we could have done, and are there things we should have...

Hubert Greenway, M.D. of Rancho Santa Fe., chairman of Mohs and dermatologic surgery at Scripps Clinic, received the Frederic E. Mohs Award from the American College of Mohs Surgery at the college’s annual meeting in San Francisco on April 28. The award honors Greenway’s lifetime achievements in...

One of the most important duties for the parents of teenagers, according to Solana Beach family medicine physician Ellen Rodarte, is to nag their children. “We have to constantly nag them and warn them about the risks of things. That’s our job,” said Rodarte, who practices at Sharp Rees-Stealy’s...

Every year, about 800,000 people suffer a stroke in the United States. Significant risk factors include atrial fibrillation (a heart rhythm disorder) and hypertension (high blood pressure). Treating these conditions can significantly reduce the risk of first or recurrent stroke. As medical director...

The Rancho Santa Fe Association continues to move forward in building its own high-speed fiber-optic network, considered the most important initiative on the board’s agenda this year. At the April 6 RSF Association board meeting, the board approved a $168,832 expenditure for an engineering design...

Joan Lunden was busy with her career as a journalist, author and motivational speaker, and didn’t always get her yearly mammograms on time. In 2014, things changed. “I heard those words no one ever wants to hear: ‘You have cancer,’” said Lunden, a former long-time host of “Good Morning America,”...

Rancho Santa Fe resident Blaise Barrelet recently launched CureMatch, a new company he believes could be the future of cancer treatment. CureMatch is a decision support platform designed to offer personalized medicine in cancer care. Operating on the belief that cancer is a personal disease that...

Physicians at Scripps Green Hospital have elected general and laparoscopic surgeon Amy Day, M.D., a Rancho Santa Fe resident, as the hospital’s new chief of staff. Day’s two-year term began on March 7. As chief of staff, Day will serve as the primary medical staff liaison to Scripps Green’s administrative...

Following a hip replacement surgery in October 2016, Rancho Santa Fe resident Ray Barshick has been able to fully embrace his active lifestyle again, pain-free for the first time in years. At the Farmers Insurance Open on Jan. 29, Barshick served as an honorary observer on behalf of Stryker Orthopaedics,...

Many women today say they are busier than ever juggling their personal and professional lives. Whether they are spending time raising the kids, working at a demanding job or managing the household, they often don’t take the time to care for themselves and their health. Two years ago, Norm Hamson...

The quest for better understanding and finding cures for ocular albinism is closer to fruition, thanks to the recent discovery of mutations in a second gene that can trigger this genetic vision disorder. This finding has major implications for better diagnosis of this disease. With a clearer understanding...

For many school-aged children, summer break is coming to an end soon. The new school year is just around the corner. For parents, it’s time to get that checklist ready, the one that makes sure your child gets off to a good, healthy start in the classroom. The following are top things to know to...

Jennifer Jones held out a plastic cup of water to a visitor. The water was crystal clear and tasted fresh and pure, as if it had been poured from a bottle of spring water. There was nothing to suggest that as recently as one hour earlier, that water had been pulled from the ocean by powerful pumps....

The Rancho Santa Fe Library unveiled the completed Nan Werner Patio and Garden last week, in memory of the longtime friend of the library who passed away in 2014. Over the summer, through a gift from the Nan and Charles Werner Fund, the library was able to add five benches, two picnic tables and...

Between the Internet, television news and social media, it seems there is a new story about heart disease nearly every day. While a great deal of information is out there, not all of it is accurate. Considering that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide — accounting for...

Ovarian cancer is notoriously difficult to diagnose and treat, making it an especially deadly disease. Researchers at UCSD School of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center have now identified six mRNA isoforms — bits of genetic material — produced by ovarian cancer cells but not normal cells, opening...

As part of the health-related lecture series hosted by the Rancho Santa Fe Library Guild, the Rancho Santa Fe library will host Dr. Charles A. Moss for a presentation and book signing at 11 a.m. June 4. Titled “Healing and Prevention Through Integrative Medicine,” the presentation builds on Moss’s...

By Joe Tash Two tiny pests that feed on citrus trees pose a big risk to Rancho Santa Fe and surrounding areas, including increased fire hazard, diminished property values and a blight on the region’s scenic appeal. Rancho Santa Fe alone is home to an estimated 60,000 to 80,000 citrus trees, mostly...

By Debra Lobatz, MFT, Scripps Health Nearly everyone forgets where they left the car keys or the name of someone they met just minutes ago. For most of us, such absentmindedness is common and not a concern. Dementia, however, is a completely different matter. Dementia is characterized by serious...

By Pat Sherman UC San Diego broke ground on its new $269 million Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute (CTRI) Jan. 10, during a ceremony attended by about 400 people, including elected officials, medical professionals, patients and philanthropists. The facility will enable laboratory...

Renowned scientist Leroy Hood, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the board of directors of the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology, has been awarded the National Medal of Science, the nation’s highest honor bestowed upon scientists. Hood will receive the award from President Obama in a White House...

By Dan Coden, MD, Scripps Health If you’re not having vision problems, do you really need an annual eye exam? Consider this: Glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness in the United States, has virtually no symptoms until significant damage has already been done. Glaucoma is a group of eye...

By Claire Discenza “The most exciting dive was the very first one,” said Doug Bartlett, marine biologist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Bartlett was one of the researchers who accompanied film director and producer James Cameron on his famous journey to the depths of the Mariana Trench...

By Lynne Friedmann 1) Natasha Balac is director of the Predictive Analytics Center of Excellence (PACE), a new initiative of the San Diego Supercomputer Center. PACE will lead a collaborative, nationwide education and training effort among academia, industry, and government to create the next generation...

By Claire D’Andrea, R.N., Scripps Health What is the greatest threat to women’s health? Surprisingly, it isn’t breast cancer—it’s heart disease. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women over age 25, killing nearly twice as many women in the United States than all types of...

International Bipolar Foundation (IBPF) recently announced the acquisition of the National Bipolar Foundation (NBF). NBF was founded by F. Marc Kullman in 2005. After being diagnosed in 1997 with Bipolar Disorder, he was determined to become a spokesperson for the disease, with hopes of eradicating...

By Athena Philis-Tsimikas, MD, Scripps Health In 1920, a Canadian surgeon by the name of Dr. Frederick Banting decided to test a theory. He believed that diabetes might be related to the function of the pancreas. Two years later, Banting and his assistant tested their insulin extract on their first...

By Catherine Ivey Lee Today’s students might be the smartest generation on record. Their IQs are higher, their GPAs are numerical masterpieces, and their resumes are bursting with achievement. But they are also the most stressed-out generation in recent history, warned parenting expert Michele...